Rapid reaction

Sunday 24 March 2002

Tottenham virtually guaranteed themselves Premiership safety with a 2-0 win over the Whites in front of a restricted capacity at Craven Cottage.

The opening goal came from Teddy Sheringham who saw a deflected Ziege free-kick ricochet off his face before flying past a wrong-footed Edwin Van der Sar. The killer blow came on 31 minutes when Ziege again was involved, this time firing a shot that Van der Sar could only palm into Gus Poyet's path.

One of the main talking points of the match came about even before a ball had been kicked, with the inclusion of Harley and Ouaddou for Brevett and Melville.

After the match Jean Tigana explained why he felt the need to make such changes.

"I tried to change some players today to give the side more power but in the end there was nothing"

The defeat still leaves Fulham three points above the relegation zone. With the prospect of a fight for survival on the horizon, Tigana admitted that he is now looking for more from his players.

"It's very dangerous now; I want to see the reaction inside my team. The key is the players. We give them the maximum and now they need to react. That is my question for the next two games. Is it possible to get that reaction"

When talk turned to the search for a solution to Fulham's current form, Tigana calmly laid down his view.

"We have some solutions, it's possible to sack the manager or the players can change within the team."